Simply Shelby

1. Diet Coke 2. Freshly washed sheets 3. Clean laundry 4. Mexican food 5. Naps 6. Students who make the best birthday cards 7. Good tunes in the car 8. Audio books of Harry Potter 9. Picture books 10. Getting the daily amount of water down 11. Haircuts 12. Family 13. Marco Polo 14. Birthday calls 15. iPad that allows me to take my TV anywhere 16. Westmore faculty and staff who are like family 17. Pink shoes 18. Amazon PRIME 19. Quip toothbrush 20. Clean classroom 21. Lunch with a good friend 22. Thinking about dreams 23. Nice pens 24. Random lesson ideas 25. iPhone 26. DESSERT

Tomorrow I turn 26. Holy smokies. I can't believe I've lived on this Earth for 26 years. Age is tricky. Getting older is tricky. Here are 26 things about me at 26. 1. I still love Diet Coke. 2. I've almost finished my first year of GRADUATE SCHOOL. Grad school, babies!! 3. I'm currently in my 5th year of teaching. 4. I've been sloooooowwwwllllyyyy learning how to wear makeup correctly. Thanks, Mags. 5. I'm currently obsessed with watching past seasons of Survivor. 6. I go to Target at least 3 times a week. 7. Trader Joes was built less than a mile from my school and I love grocery shopping there. 8. Rachel Hollis has given me a new perspective of life. 9. I'm going to China for the month of June for an internship. 10. Pons are my favorite shoes. 11. I sewed my first costume in January. It was for my school play of Peter Pan. 12. I got rid of all the clothes that don't fit me right now and it was empowering. 13. I prefer my hair to be blonde....

Today, I witnessed a miracle. It was powerful. A kid in my class did something incredible. “A” came into my classroom in August reading 13 words per minute. Today, he read THREE pages in a chapter book during reading groups. Today, he taught me a lesson. There is no excuse for being complacent in life. None. A week from today I turn 26 years old. Having a birthday for me is kind of like eating a week-old ham sandwich. It’s not the best. Some people get seasonal depression; I get birthday depression. Okay, I get seasonal depression, too, but that’s beside the point. As I was driving home from grad school tonight I decided to take matters into my own hands. I will set a goal for my 26 th year of life and it will give ME life. My goal for my 26 th year of life is to document each day for 365 days. When I was in high school I loved to blog. I would blog about boys, school, and religion. I would expect the 365 days of my 26 th year to look somewhat similar, just more….. ma...

It's been almost a year since I blogged and honestly I haven't felt the need to write as much since I was in high school. I look back at how consistent I was in my blogging and I really like the person I used to be. I tell people all the time that the prime of my life was when I was in high school.  My life now consists of being exhausted 100% of the time. Even though it's summer, I still find myself teaching summer school, collaborating with my new team, and then being a full-time graduate student at night. I should probably mention that my classroom is a disaster and those plans I had for the perfect pirate classroom are slowly fading as the hours go on. You hear people all the time talking about how their life isn't going according to plan and I am among those people. I never imagined that I would be 25 years old, going into my 5th year teaching, a graduate student at BYU, single, and as exhausted as I am. I hope you know that I don't use the word exhausted li...

Baby Asher, Your momma is currently in labor and in a few hours you'll make your grand debut into this world. From the moment I knew you were coming I was in shock and how much my heart could grow. I work with sweet children all day and I love them so much. The love I already have for you is so different. You'll be the first grandchild of my parents, and you'll be my first ever niece. You're coming into a world that is incredibly hard and difficult. With your amazing parents in your life you'll be taught how to be strong and to be valiant in all circumstances. Your dad, my brother, is an excellent human being. He is dedicated, he is a dreamer, he is a hard worker, and he will be the most amazing father. Your mom is so beautiful. She is loving, she is patient, and she loves your dad so much. Your grandma, my mom, is SO excited for you. She will love you and spoil you, but she will also help you when things get hard. Your Grandma Forsyth is a tough woman. The toughes...

For me, it’s usually night when all the feels start hitting and I get all sorts of nostalgic. August brings so many challenges for me in many ways. Once August hits it means summer is finally coming to an end and even though I’m usually ready to go back to work, the stress starts to creep in. Going into my 4 th year seems bizarre. I don’t feel as if I’m a seasoned teacher, but since I’m not worried about the first day of school I think that says something. August also is the month where 5 years ago I took a big risk and moved to Utah. I left the comfort of my sweet southern home and stepped out on my own. Since 5 years seems like an eternity and a second all at the same time, I decided to write down the 5 most important things that have happened to me since I moved here. 1.      Attending and graduating from BYU. I loved my time at BYU. I ran through my experience and I don’t regret that at all. I always knew the college lifestyle wasn’t for me, so getting thro...

Considering my last post was in October, this morning I woke up and finally wanted to let the fingers type and do the talking. Since October my life has changed and I have grown so much. I always knew I wanted to be a teacher and I also always knew that I have both of my parents running through my blood. What this means for me is that I have this incredible drive to push myself to limits that haven't been set. My beautiful mother gave me passion for education. She constantly sets the example of the most excellent educator and one day I hope to be as successful as she is and was in the classroom. My mother gave me the realistic expectations that come with teaching, such as not always getting my way or having things work out in the way I would like them to. Bless her soul for being my constant supporter. My father gave me the drive to work hard and to never give up. He works construction and there hasn't been one thing that he hasn't finished once he set his mind to it. He...